Trader Joe’s cracks down on customer problem

It’s not exactly headline news that egg prices are through the roof of the coop. There are numerous reasons for the increase, but the biggest one is the avian flu outbreak that has decimated flocks.

Because of contamination risks, chicken farmers have had to cull their herds, destroying millions of birds each month and causing overall production to drop. So far in 2025, more than 30 million birds have been killed, bringing the total of birds lost to more than 150 million in the last year.

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Inventory has dropped by around 3.5 percent in the last six months, making it harder for egg producers to meet demand. 

The shortage has also led to continual price increases over the last year.

At the beginning of the year, a dozen eggs cost around $4.90. By March 2025, the average price of a dozen eggs was up to $6.20, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). (For the sake of comparison, a dozen eggs in January 2024 cost around $2.50, according to BLS.) In some parts of the U.S., a dozen eggs cost more than $10. 

Costco has implemented egg purchase limits but is still often sold out.

Image source: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP Getting Images

Are eggs expensive everywhere?

Americans eat a lot of eggs. Per capita egg consumption is around 281 eggs per year — that’s almost one egg a day. Some of those eggs come in the form of baked goods and other foods, but nonetheless, that is a lot of eggs. 

Increased egg expenses have affected many businesses, especially breakfast restaurants. Waffle House announced in February it would add a $0.50 per egg surcharge to every egg dish on its menu, so a three-egg Denver omelette would cost an additional $1.50. Denny’s also added a surcharge to its egg dishes. 

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Some retailers saw the egg crisis as a public-relations opportunity. Giant Eagle, a Midwest/East coast grocer, said it was selling eggs “at or below our cost across all our supermarkets,” because the company believes “these actions are necessary to show up for our customers at this important moment,” according to Progressive Grocer. 

Mega retailers like Costco have raised egg prices and even so, their stores are often completely sold out. Costco is still limiting customers to “three packages” of eggs per day (although it’s worth noting a package of eggs at Costco could be as many as three or four dozen). At Walmart, customers are limited to two 60-egg cartons per purchase.

Many other stores, including specialty retailers such as Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and others, warned consumers that they could only purchase one or two dozen eggs at time. 

The question is: at the stores with limits, how are the rules being enforced?

One store is enforcing limits on egg purchases

While many stores have posted signs warning customers of limits, it’s incumbent upon store clerks to enforce the policy when checking customers out.

At one Trader Joe’s in New York City, there were reports of hoarding, with people trying to buy as many as 15 cartons at a time. Customers tried to find workarounds, such as having their children pay for the eggs, but invariably they got busted at the checkout, according to a story in The New York Post. 

Related: Trader Joe’s shares new locations coming soon

New York City has seen some of the highest egg prices in the country. At some points this year, a dozen eggs has cost nearly $15. Trader Joe’s has managed to maintain relatively low prices all along, which may be why people are trying to flout the rules there.  

While prices have come down slightly in recent weeks, complaints of illegal egg and poultry price gouging in New York have skyrocketed, according to The Post.

The New York Attorney General’s Office even issued a warning to poultry businesses about price gouging, saying, “Eggs are an essential grocery staple in households across the state, and New Yorkers should not pay ludicrous amounts just to feed their families. The bird flu is affecting poultry farms and causing a national shortage, but this should not be an excuse for businesses to dramatically raise prices.”

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